This book is the story of Mark Twain, and was written by Albert Bigelow Paine who was an American author and biographer best known for his work with Mark Twain. Paine was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts and moved to Bentonsport, Iowa at the age of 1. He later moved to St. Louis, where he trained as a photographer, and became a dealer in photographic supplies in Fort Scott, Kansas. He wrote several children's books, the first of which was published in 1898. He went on to write about his travelling adventures, including The Tent Dwellers, written about a trout fishing trip to Nova Scotia.